On an internal physical level, basically what we’re looking to do with our detox is accomplish three goals:
1. Rest the system so that it can repair and re-establish the healthy flora – bacteria so that our system can work properly
2. Clear out the old stuff that’s clogging our system
3. Get the system back in shape so that it can work properly.
While this subject might not be very spiritual it’s one it’s a real issue for many people and can be quite a distraction. Many people really suffer with constipation and don’t even know why. There are a lot of contributing factors, and you may have found that on this cleanse you’re digestive track, intestines and colon are working better than ever. The twelve hour rest between dinner and breakfast gives your digestive system a chance to repair and to build up healthy intestinal flora so that you can properly digest food.
Something that helps your digestive tract – don’t drink liquid during a meal – or keep it to a minimum. Give yourself a good 30 minute window before during and after your meal to let your body’s natural digestive juices do there thing without diluting them. As I understand it, (I’m a minister, not a medical professional) what’s happened is that all the food that your body couldn’t digest for various reasons, (maybe you drank too much liquid with the meal and your own digestive juices got too watered down, maybe what you ate is too glutenous or undigestible, not enough healthy fiber in your diet – I can’t really say) well, it literally sticks to the insides of your intestines. Over time, it begins to harden there and then your intestines aren’t able to function properly.
We receive nourishment from our digestive system through the walls of the intestines into blood vessels for further processing and storage. Your intestines are meant to have what’s called peristaltic action which is a series of wave-like muscle contractions that move the food along your intestines through your digestive system.
Think of your intestines like a tube with a slinky in it that can expand and contract. It’s pretty easy to comprehend that if you let the old undigested food in the intestines, and old fecal matter in the colon, collect there and it hardens along the walls, the only thing that causes food to move through your digestive system will be more food pushing it through. The peristaltic action gets really stagnant and, essentially your colon and intestines get out of shape. Not healthy.
Then the toxicity then builds up inside, severely decreasing peristaltic action AND what many people find is that they’re not getting a lot of the nutrients from their food because it’s moving right through and not being properly digested so they actually start eating more in order to get nutrition. In a sense, unhealthy people eat more because they’re getting less nutrition from what they do eat which keeps the cycle going.
A healthy animal, think of a dog, has a bowel movement pretty much after every meal. Food goes in, moves along the system and starts that peristaltic action and something’s got to come out. If you have a dog, would you ever feed it and then NOT let it out to use the bathroom right away? Not unless you like having dog poop in your house!
Think of a newborn baby, whose digestive system is brand new. Babies poop frequently because they eat frequently. Their system is working well because it’s healthy and new.
Many people are not healthy animals. I know people that have gone almost a month without a bowel movement. (Sorry to be so graphic.) It seems like self-abuse to let things come to that, doesn’t it? Well, people abuse their bodies all kinds of ways. Nothing new about that.
If you pay attention, you’ll notice that a lot of the time you might be clenching your buttocks. Start to think about relaxing your body more often, breathe deeply and fill your lungs and relax the muscles in the whole body. Relax your belly and buttocks. It feels good. Bless your body and give thanks for the amazing job it does that allows you to be on this journey of awakening on earth!
Here are some helpful hints for you during the detox:
- If you’re having issues with constipation, it could actually mean you’re getting too much fiber. If you think that might be the case, back off a bit for a day or so and see if that gets things moving again.
- If you’re not getting enough fiber, consider taking fiber to help clean out your system and keep you regular – my preference is to eat more fiber – put some kale in your smoothie.
- You can also try Psyllium Husk and/or Bentonite Clay to help aid in the release of the toxic build up in colon and intestines. I have found other doctors also recommend this. The clay can go right into your smoothie. They both help to clean out the intestines and colon.
- Taking magnesium is a really good idea because it helps the muscle contractions to move things through as you’re cleansing. Most people have a lot of atrophy in their colon and intestines and the combination of magnesium and hydrocolonics helps to get things back in shape.
- Laxitive herbal tea – Smooth Move is a good one – work well – a cup in the evening before bed and one in the morning.
- Drink more water between meals – that helps relieve constipation. Also having a diet higher in healthy fats helps things move more smoothly.
One thing that helped me was to have a good colon hydro therapist – My favorite in Los Angeles is my longtime friend and fellow Agape Practitioner, LaDonna Bennet, and you can find her at http://www.universalflowinc.com.
When I’ve done fasts, I’ve found that having a series of three (or more) colonics during the process is very helpful. It’s also a practice in humility. I’ve been to a few different hydro colon therapists and they’ve all been lovely women who had a very gentle, loving touch.
If you’re feeling that your intestines and colon aren’t working that well, seek advice about having getting a series of colonics. For a lot of people it’s extremely helpful. The colonics help to exercise your colon and get your system working better. Colonics also help flush out a lot of the toxic waste in the system. It’s like getting your colon in shape so that it can resume it’s natural healthy functioning.
In the book we’ve been using for our detox, Clean, by Alejandro Junger, he says, “Constipation is one of the most frequent health complaints in the Western world. Constipation is an alarm going off that something’s not right. We’re loving ourselves free of feeling poorly. Obviously, being constipated gets incredibly uncomfortable and feels toxic. We don’t have to just accept it. It’s about taking a holistic approach to get the whole system working well again.
Our goals are: honoring body and loving our body so that we can have healthy serotonin levels and feel more Joy and Freedom. This gives us more energy to deepen our spiritual practice and transform our life. If we don’t feel well, if we’re intentionally not living a healthy life, our connection with Spirit will be less than healthy too.
Please share in our facebook group – let us know what you’re personally discovering and feeling as you move through the detox.
Who doesn’t love french fries?
Here’s a great recipe for Oven Fries:
I’ve made fries in the oven for at least 20 years – they’re one of my favorites. They’re also super easy! On our cleanse we can make them with butternut squash ( you can buy it already cut up and ready to go!), carrots, rutabaga, celery root – experiment! Click here to find a simple recipe you’ll love – and so will your friends and family!
If you’re finding what I’m sharing to be helpful won’t you please share at facebook and twitter to let others know? Thank you!
Come run away with me! Check out my Stop Playing Small Retreat this May in North Carolina! ALSO I’m offering my Spiritual Counseling Intensive Training again – check it out, also in May in North Carolina!
